


Allow Me a Word

by Nejilover022



Series: Office Romance [2]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Office, Day 7, Free day, M/M, Prequel?, but its related to my main fic, narutorarepairweek2020, written for narutorarepair week, yours with love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-09
Updated: 2020-05-09
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:13:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,170
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24086425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nejilover022/pseuds/Nejilover022
Summary: Neji's just minding his own business trying to manage his new promotion while trying to find someone to replace his old position. That's not going as good as he wishes it would, as in it's been five weeks now... In the mist of all that, he receives a most unusual letter. What do you do when the guy who sends you a love letter applies the next day to be your colleague?Prequel-ish exposition side story of the main story 'Yours, with Love'
Relationships: Hyuuga Neji/Rock Lee
Series: Office Romance [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1737766
Comments: 4
Kudos: 6





	Allow Me a Word

“I love my job” Neji whispers to himself as a mantra.

It’s a true statement, just not at the moment. Neji has worked very hard this last year as secondary personal assistant. When Tenten, the primary pa, was promoted as the head of the accessories department, his efforts had landed him the promotion to primary pa. He was ecstatic until the task of finding someone to replace him as secondary pa turned out to be extremely difficult. As such, it’s been roughly five weeks of managing both positions. He’s tired!

Sure, Sakura tried as she could to make it easier on him, but as the Editor-in-Chief of Haruno’ Fashion, she was busy herself with her own demanding work.

Neji wonders if he should stay and work another hour or if he should call it a day. What else is there left to do anyway? There’s apparently been a delay with the last photo shoot meaning the graphic design team won’t send their report tonight. Tenten already sent hers, Shikamaru’s always late…Choji should’ve sent his by now, Neji decides to look it up. As predicted, the e-mail’s there. But that’s not all. There’s another e-mail…by Lee. 

‘Allow me a word’ the title reads. Neji wonders what this is about. Sent via professional e-mail, ok then he can’t just delete it. But looking at the time, Neji hesitates in opening the e-mail; he’s tired and wants to go home. He has no desire to deal with whatever Sasuke’s pa wants. What if it’s important? Maybe it’s a warning of something to come. They are rival companies after all.

A quick read and then it’s home Neji decides:

_Allow me a word to tell you how much I love you,_

_A thousand times, a thousand and one, a thousand and two, a thousand and three even.  
How could I not fall for the loveliest of faces that has withstood hardships and emerged victorious? For those beautiful eyes riddled with passion, shining jewels of the earth? For this wild spirit who inspires me to rise above my troubles everyday since I’ve opened my heart to you._

_I can hush my sentiments no more and if I may be so bold, I ask that you allow me a chance to prove my feelings to you._

_Yours, with love_

_RL_

Oh. So you barely talk to me until today, flirt a little, and then you send me a letter claiming that you love me…Not only am I supposed to believe in your words, but you want a chance to ‘prove yourself’.

Neji huffs at the ridiculousness of the situation. This has got to be a joke. As such, he should delete this junk without regards. Better yet, Neji considers he could send a reply! Just to mock the sender.

You don’t just barging in my life to say something that stupid and think you can get away with it.

Neji recalls the way Lee’s gaze kept shifting towards him at the Winter Wonderland Fashion Event. All night Neji waited for the inevitable moment where he’d come by to hang out and kill time. It’s almost a given that personal assistants stick together at those sort of events while the bosses chat. Lee had remained by Sasuke’s side though. Maybe Lee had wanted to join him more than he had thought?

Neji looks at the e-mail unsure of what to do now. It’s late, he shouldn’t do anything. Neji closes his computer and takes his stuff; he’s going to sleep that’s what he’s gonna do.

The next morning, the first thing Neji does once he’s at work is to go check his e-mail. Hopefully that stupid letter was only a feverish hallucination due to overwork. No such luck. Still there. Still as dumb as the first time he had read it. Just as dumb the fifth time. Would it still be as dumb the ninetieth time right after reading it the eightieth time? Yep.  
Neji drinks the last of his coffee; he hasn’t slept well what with the tossing and turning over the letter and now he could barely concentrate on his work. Actually, he could spare some attention to one thing: Sakura’s pensive pacing around the office.

Neji sighs and shifts his focus back to work once more. It’s not long before he switches tabs to the e-mail once more. He was right about Lee being a special one that’s for sure. Who in their right mind even writes this sort of sappy shit nowadays? And why is it that the most romantic thing anybody ever did for him a badly written love letter? Neji googles macramé designs, anything to get his mind off things. He closes the tab remembering that with this new promotion, he has barely any time to himself…God he hates how giddy he feels. Maybe he’s just sick?

“Human Resources [...] any candidates lately”, comments Sakura.

Neji hums but he’s hardly listening.

“[…] Sasuke’s pa [...] applied last night.”

Neji raises his head from the computer. _What?_ Lee had applied to work here as secondary assistant? He did say he wanted to prove himself, that’s a step Neji agrees to recognise that much. They’ll be working together, then…Colleagues…with someone totally whipped about you, fancy that.

“[...] sent by Sasuke? What if he has ulterior motives?”

As Neji looks at the letter once more, picturing Lee’s stupid grin full of endearing candor. He considers himself a rational man, logic oriented, and as such, he can’t let himself fall over a one-off romantic act. That’s it he’s deleting the e-mail.

_Allow me a chance_

Alright, I’ll let you try, Neji decides, but don’t think a letter’s enough to get me to open up my heart just yet. If anything’s to happen, and Neji is doubtful, it’ll take time. He deletes the e-mail, but not before he prints out a copy for himself.

“There’s no proof he has an agenda”, replies Neji retrieving his freshly printed out letter.

“I suppose it would be jumping the gun. That Lee, so earnest, the possibility that things could go wrong probably didn’t even cross his mind.”

Neji smiles, he couldn’t have said it better.

“[...] inventory from Tenten [...] coffee.”

“On it.”

When Neji’s back from his errand, he sees that Lee’s in Sakura’s office; things sure move fast, he thinks. A moment later, Sakura exits and she’s all smiles. That can only mean one thing.

“So, you got the job”, comments Neji as Lee exits the office in turn.

“Yeah…Guess I’ll be seeing more of your pretty face.”

Once Lee’s gone, Neji carefully folds the letter and tucks it away in an inner pocket of his jacket. Things are bound to become interesting from then on. He smiles to himself.

“Can’t wait.”

Little does Neji know he’s not who the letter was meant for. Little does Lee know he’ll fall even harder for the one who received it by error. But as most things in life do, shit works out. The fun is in seeing how!

**Author's Note:**

> I had absolutely zero intention of ever writing Lee’s love letter (sorry not sorry) because:
> 
> A) I thought it a drag to write a mushy blur of feelings
> 
> B) Sometimes, you just gotta leave some things to your imagination. I didn’t think I had what it takes to write something convincingly romantic, let alone better than whatever you can imagine…
> 
> C) It was fun to reference something that only existed as an ideal
> 
> However with the Naruto rarepair week going on, and my desire to shamelessly promote my on-going fic focusing on a rare pair i.e. Nejilee, I’ve decided to give it a go. Having found the excuse I was looking for, I couldn’t pass up the chance
> 
> So here’s this short stand-alone fic ^^ if you liked it and are curious about what happens next, there’s more at _Yours, With Love_
> 
> If you’ve already been reading the main story, I hope you enjoyed this little extra <3
> 
> Anyway thank you for reading :)
> 
> Enjoy <3


End file.
